Published
08/10/2026, 15:41Dair Orunbekov, Head of the Information Policy Service at the Presidential Administration of Kyrgyzstan, stated that the information circulating on social media regarding alleged embezzlement of funds at customs and interference in the agency’s work by relatives of the head of state is untrue.
On his Facebook page, he commented on a video by Syrgak Kenzhebayev, which claims that the brother of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic allegedly influences the work of the customs authorities and is involved in the misappropriation of funds. According to Orunbekov, these claims are not supported by any facts and are refuted by official statistics and the results of reforms in the customs sector.
He cited the trend in customs revenue as his main argument. Whilst customs revenue stood at around 20 billion KGS per year prior to 2020, it began to rise rapidly following the digitalisation of processes: in 2021, revenue reached 46.9 billion KGS, in 2022 – 74 billion, in 2023 – 111.5 billion, in 2024 – 123.1 billion, and in 2025 – 157.4 billion KGS. According to Orunbekov, such growth would have been impossible had the previous corruption schemes remained in place.
He also stated that cargo clearance has now been fully digitised. The movement of vehicles is monitored using GPS seals, CCTV cameras and a unified information system, which allows the movement of goods to be tracked in real time from the border crossing point to the domestic customs terminal.
Furthermore, Orunbekov dismissed claims that the customs infrastructure is dysfunctional. He stated that, following the transfer of the terminals to the state-owned enterprise ‘State Customs Infrastructure’ in 2023, the facilities were modernised, and the enterprise’s monthly revenue rose from approximately 10 million KGS to over 120 million KGS.
In conclusion, the head of the Information Policy Service urged citizens to take a critical approach to information circulating online and not to trust allegations that are not supported by evidence.
